OH, CANADA!
Once upon a time many of us who reside in the border states (that is the US/Canadian border) viewed Canada as a kind of Mecca of good beer. I attended college a short drive from the border and periodically my compatriots and I would jump into whichever car had gas enough to get there and back again and head for the Great White North (a term used to refer to the amount of snow up there, not the fact that the country is predominantly Caucasian; though, paradoxically, we here in Central New York generally get much more snow - residing as we do on the receiving end of Lake Ontario - than much of Southern Canada, so to them we should be referred to as the Great White South. Okay, come to think of it, that's not such a good idea). Anyway, once there, we would load up on cases of Brador, John Labatt's Export Ale, Moosehead Beer, Molson Export Ale as well as others. Were they better than the crop of mass produced beers we were stuck with in the States? Well, Brador was a bigger beer than most in the States, weighing in at a whopping 6% ABV. Most were actually ales as opposed to the same-old-same-old lagers we were getting south of the border. And to add insult to injury, American brewers foisted the dreaded light or lite beer on the world. It was as if someone said, "Let's see if we can we make American beers even more tasteless than they already are."
Then came the Great Craft Beer Revolution in the US. Suddenly American beers had flavor, aroma, color, panache. And soon those Canadian beers just could not measure up. But Canada, like much of the rest of the civilized world, is catching on to the craft beer craze. on a recent trip to Quebec City I was pleased to find a number of delicious craft beers that never make it to the States. We see plenty of Molson Canadian and Labatt's Blue. Not so much so with beers such as Red Racer from Central City Brewing or Nutcracker Porter from Black Oak Brewery. The Canadian craft beer industry seems to be growing quickly and, at least in the urban areas, is catching on. We visited a number of brew pubs while in Quebec City and they seem to be thriving. The selection of beer styles is wide and varied so that whatever you crave, be it Sours, Stouts, Wheats, IPAs, German, Belgian, British, or American, you can find it. Happily for me, IPAs and Pale Ales were numerous, often unique and tasty.
SEALED WITH A BEER
Then came the Great Craft Beer Revolution in the US. Suddenly American beers had flavor, aroma, color, panache. And soon those Canadian beers just could not measure up. But Canada, like much of the rest of the civilized world, is catching on to the craft beer craze. on a recent trip to Quebec City I was pleased to find a number of delicious craft beers that never make it to the States. We see plenty of Molson Canadian and Labatt's Blue. Not so much so with beers such as Red Racer from Central City Brewing or Nutcracker Porter from Black Oak Brewery. The Canadian craft beer industry seems to be growing quickly and, at least in the urban areas, is catching on. We visited a number of brew pubs while in Quebec City and they seem to be thriving. The selection of beer styles is wide and varied so that whatever you crave, be it Sours, Stouts, Wheats, IPAs, German, Belgian, British, or American, you can find it. Happily for me, IPAs and Pale Ales were numerous, often unique and tasty.
Though we've got to say good-bye to the summer, here's our take on a few seasonal brews that will no doubt return next year.
LONG TRAIL SUMMER ALE
LONG TRAIL BREWING
THE BEER FACTS: STYLE: Summer Ale; BREWER: Long Trail Brewing Co., Bridgewater Corners, VT; ABV: 4.3%; IBUs: 32; MALT: Pilsner; HOPS: Citra
WHAT THE BREWER SAYS: "An unfiltered golden ale made to chill out summer's hottest days. Remarkabley light on the palate, with a soft Polsner malt character and a distinct citrus hop character... Each sip finishes with a refreshing bitterness that invites another. At 4.3% ABV, this golden beauty is a truly quaffable drinking experience."
COLOR: lemon-yellow straw, unfiltered
POUR: Decent head, white
AROMA: Soapy, lemon (Pledge?)
BODY: Toward the light side
TASTE: Lemon/citrus with Pilsner malt base
OVERALL IMPRESSION: Between "I Could Drink This" and "Can't Get Enough!"
COMMENTS: "A little hoppier and more bitter than I would have expected from a summer ale; Lemon notes for sure; Quenches your thirst; Nice hot weather beer; Good golf cart/lawn-mower beer; Definitely more flavor than I've seen in most summer ales; Very drinkable beer, for sure."
BROOKLYN SUMMER ALE
BROOKLYN BREWING
WHAT THE BREWER SAYS: "Brooklyn Summer Ale is a refreshing, flaorful pale ale made to accompany you on all your warm weather adventures. 100% British 2-row barley brings its famed bready flavors, capped off with German and American hops to provide a snappy, clean bitterness and a bright aroma. It's a sunny pale ale, Brooklyn style."
COLOR: Pale yellow
POUR: Decent head
AROMA: Grassy
BODY: Light
TASTE: Not a lot! Slight hint of citrus hop at the end, maybe. Some pale malt to it. But very thin and watery.
OVERALL IMPRESSION: Leave it on the Shelf.
COMMENTS: "Thin body and thin taste; Not much hop presence - not much flavor, period; Tastes like a mega-brew beer to me; Could have been brewed by Bud; Disappointing, I like some of their other beers a lot."
SAM ADAMS SUMMER ALE
SAMUEL ADAMS BREWING
THE BEER FACTS: STYLE: American Pale Wheat Ale; BREWER: Samuel Adams Brewing, Boston, Mass., ABV: 5.3%; IBU: 7; MALT: Samuel Adams two-row pale malt blend, malted wheat; HOPS: Hallertau Mittelfrueh, Saaz Noble.WHAT THE BREWER SAYS: "Same delicious beer, brand new look. Summer Ale returns for its 21st year with limited edition packaging that’s as exciting as a summertime adventure. From the blazing yellow of the afternoon sun to the fiery orange of an evening sunset to the electric blue tint of a summer night, the colors of Summer Ale and its crisp, citrusy flavor, are your perfect companion anywhere, anytime."
COLOR: Straw
POUR: Decent white head
AROMA: Hay
BODY: Thin
TASTE: Cloves, banana and lemon
OVERALL IMPRESSION: I Could Drink This
COMMENTS: "No finish, no real hop to it; Nothing offensive; At least it's not a sour; sip with a straw; Kind of a weak lemonade taste to it; It's kind of what I expect when I see the words 'Summer Ale' on a beer, so I guess if that's what they were aiming for, they hit the nail on the head; It's just a kind of a meh beer."
CITRA SEA
HARPOON BREWING
THE BEER FACTS: STYLE: Citra IPA; BREWER: Harpoon Brewery; ABV: 5.8%; IBUs; 45; HOPS: CitraWHAT THE BREWER SAYS: "Citra hops provide a juicy citrus character in this grapefruit peel-infused IPA. The malt blend adds depth and a touch of sweetness and gives the beer its bronze hue and medium body. The finish is all citrus, all day. This IPA is easygoing and ripe with citrus flavor. Happy summer."
COLOR: Golden
POUR: Decent though short-lived head
AROMA: Grapefruit peel
BODY: Between light and medium
TASTE: Grapefruit and citurs with slight malt backing
OVERALL IMPRESSION: Between "I Could Drink This" and "Can't Get Enough!"
COMMENTS: "Would quench your thirst; Real nice beer; I liked it; I'd buy it; Has a nice IPA bite to it, but very light on its feet; The citrus taste does have a nice summer feel without being bland or tasting like some boring mega-brew."
PORCHDICK CITRA PALE ALE
COPPER CITY BREWING
THE BEER FACTS: STYLE: Pale Ale; BREWER: Copper City Brewing Co., Rome, NY; ABV: 5.9%; HOPS: Citra
WHAT THE BREWER SAYS: "A refreshingly ballsy pale ale! Lightly malted and dry hopped with Citra hops."
COLOR: Copper
POUR: Near Guinness-class head, big and long-lasting.
AROMA: Not a strong aroma, perhaps a bit metallic.
BODY: Medium
TASTE: Balanced with more malt presence than most of the others, bit of citrus. A little toffee and clove in there.
OVERALL IMPRESSION: Darn near "Can't Get Enough!"
COMMENTS: "More of an English style than American; Really nice taste; Nice flavor - nice finish; A small alcohol bite at the end; Real nice 'after-taste' to it; Fills the mouth; Some clove and toffee going on in there I think; Nice beer."
NU SKOOL IPA
SOUTHERN TIER
THE BEER FACTS: STYLE: India Pale Ale; BREWER: Southern Tier Brewing Co., Lakewood, NY; ABV: 6.0%; HOPS: IBUs: 55; HOPS: Combination of new American and experimental hops.
WHAT THE BREWER SAYS: "This beer shocases just how far we've come with alluring aromas and explosive flavors using only new American and experimental hops. There's no need to add anything else. It's time to graduate to the next level of hop flavors with Nu Skool IPA."
COLOR: Golden, pale
POUR: Big, white, nearly Guinness-class head,
AROMA: Citrus, grapefruit
BODY: Medium
TASTE: Piney up front with strong tropical fruit flavors laid over a sweet maltiness.
OVERALL IMPRESSION: Can't Get Enough!
COMMENTS: "Perfect IPA; Nice bitterness with malt sweetness; Nice crisp finish; I like this tropical fruit hoppiness; This is a 'summer' beer that I can really warm up to; Much superior to the light beer styles many brewers seem to default to for a summer ale."
GRINDSTONE SUMMER ALE
GRINDSTONE BREWING
THE BEER FACTS: STYLE: Summer IPA; BREWER: Grindstone Brewing, Pulaski, NY; ABV: 6.3%; MALT: 2 Row and 6 Row brewers' malt; HOPS: Citra, Mosaic
WHAT THE BREWER SAYS: "It's this summer's brew. Enjoy it while it lasts!"
COLOR: Unfiltered Straw
POUR: Better than Decent Head
AROMA: Grassy
BODY: Between Medium and Full
TASTE: Hints of grapefruit and citrus with a solid malt that gives it a bit more body than most Summer Ales. Bit of breadiness and pine.
OVERALL IMPRESSION: Can't Get Enough!
COMMENTS: "Fills the mouth; More complex than a lot of the summer ales, bigger bodied; Can't brew it fast enough? Why is he such a slacker?; Terrific beer!; Very tasty, nice change-up from some of the lighter ales of summer."
GHOST HAMMER SEASONAL ALE
STONE BREWING
THE BEER FACTS:STYLE: STYLE: India Pale Ale: BREWER: Stone Brewing Co., San Diego, CA; ABV: 6.7%; IBUs: 56; HOPS: Loral
WHAT THE BREWER SAYS: "A fermenting beer never slumbers. Consequently, there is always scattered activity tending ou precious beers throughout the dark hours. In these late nights and wee hours that hallowed responsibility falls to the shoulders of the overnight Brew Crew...This IPA, liberally hopped with Loral (TM), honors our intrepid overnight team by naming it after their mischievous poltergeist companion - the Ghost Hammer."
COLOR: Unfiltered clover honey
POUR: Better than Decent Head
AROMA: A bit dank, grassy
BODY: A bit more than Medium
TASTE: Citrus, floral, tropical fruit, touch of lemon, bit of toffee
OVERALL IMPRESSION: Can't Get Enough!
COMMENTS: "Nice finish; Stone always knows what they're doing; Another nicely balanced seasonal beer that shouldn't be seasonal - would buy it year round; I really like this; Very few Stone beers I haven't liked - even their Pilsner is okay."
QUICK SHOUT OUT
We started the session off with a real nice "palate cleanser" - Roll Away IPA from Lost Nation Brewery out of Morrisville, VT. It was not a summer ale so we didn't include it in our reviews. But it was an awesome beer and a great way to start off the festivities.
WHO WEATHERED OUR SUMMER ALE CRITIQUE?
We ended with a rare three-way tie for first place. Our favorite three were:
Grindstone Summer Ale - a bit more body, somewhat maltier than your typical summer ale.
Stone's Ghost Hammer IPA - another well-balanced brew with a bit more complexity than one would typically see in a summer ale. Big, bold IPA with a lot of flavor.
Southern Tier's Nu Skool IPA - we felt this was what a summer ale should be like: bright, full-flavored with a big tropical fruit punch to it.
2. Copper City's Porchdick Pale Ale - we really liked this beer which had a decidedly British vibe to it - delicious beer.
3. Harpoon's Citra Sea - a definite summery feel to this one without being bland or tasting like a run-of-the-mill mega-brew lager. Very easy drinking with refreshing citus zing.
4. Long Trail Summer Ale - another good summery ale - light without being flavorless.
5. Sam Adams Summer Ale - an inoffensive, okay beer but not one any of us would actively seek out.
6. Brooklyn Summer Ale - we found very disappointing. Very little flavor, reminding us more of a mega-brew blah beer than a craft beer. Wouldn't buy it, period.
Up next: Buy local!
Sláinte,
The BOTB Guys
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